Notorious Bulgarian Media Mogul Keeps MP Seat

Delyan Peevski keeps the post of MP from liberal party Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS). Photo by BGNES

Bulgaria's Constitutional Court (KS) has confirmed that controversial media mogul Delyan Peevski keeps his MP seat.

With a 7 to 5 vote on Thursday, KS upheld for the second time Peevski's right to remain in office as MP from liberal party Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS), according to reports to 24 Hours daily.

KS ruled in response to requests to shed light on cases of pre-term termination of MP powers.

Bulgaria's Constitutional Court was first asked to interpret article 72 of the Constitution by the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP).

Subsequently, proceedings initiated by President Rosen Plevneliev in end-October over the same matter were added to the case.

7 members of the Constitutional Court voted Thursday that in order for Peevski's term in office as MP to be terminated, he should have filed a resignation and it should have been put to the vote in Parliament.

KS's ruling informed that the fact that Peevski had taken an oath of office as Chair of the State Agency for National Security (DANS) did not automatically mean that he had left his MP seat.

On June 19, 2013, Bulgaria's Parliament adopted a decision revoking the appointment of the shady media mogul as Chair of the State Agency for National Security (DANS) approved on June 14, 2013. The move followed a wave of massive anti-graft protests in Sofia.

Plevneliev stated in end-October 29 that the decision adopted by Parliament on June 19 contradicted basic principles of the Constitution.

On October 8, 2013, the Constitutional Court decided that Peevski was to keep his MP post.

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